Was India-Pakistan World Cup Semifinal Fixed?

“Tendulkar may have had strawberry yoghurt for breakfast, but it looks like the Pakistani fielders had lots and lots of butter, which they left on their fingers. Terrible from Pakistan. Lucky for India and Tendulkar.”

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Virat Kohli and Harbhajan Singh celebrated India’s win during the World Cup semifinal with Pakistan, March 30, 2011 in Mohali, Punjab, India.

That’s an excerpt from India Real Time’s live blog on the Cricket World Cup semifinal in Mohali almost a year ago. The match is now under renewed scrutiny following an article in the U.K.’s Sunday Times that cited a Delhi bookmaker as saying it was fixed.

The Sunday Times article gives no indication as to what the fixing in that particular match might have involved, and the above quote wasn’t suggesting that Pakistani players deliberately dropped catches and fielded badly on purpose. But the issue of corruption and fixing has come to dominate the game of cricket to such a degree that any unusual occurrences, including particularly awful fielding by international caliber players, aren’t always taken at face value. They are sadly viewed with suspicion rather than celebrated as one of the great tenets of sport, its unpredictability.

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Sunday’s article by former News of the World journalist Mazher Mahmood reiterated that cricket is riddled with corruption, and India is at the heart of the problem, with a network of illegal bookmakers, ready punters, and even a Bollywood temptress who has tried to persuade players to indulge in fixing. This could include anything from scoring slowly to guaranteeing the outcome of a match, with payments for their treachery reaching as high as £750,000 ($1.2 million), it says.

“Corruption has grown to the point where, according to Indian law enforcement officials, it has become endemic. It is now more widespread and played for higher stakes than ever before, buoyed by India’s booming economy,” writes Mr. Mahmood, who became known as the “Fake Sheikh” for his choice of disguise when investigating. His targets have included politicians, celebrities and sportspeople.

“The story starts among the millions of cricket followers in the teeming cities and slums of India. Fans can bet on any match…and lay odds on the outcome, the numbers of runs scored in selected overs or even on individual balls,” the article states.

“The bookmakers’ activities are illegal in India, yet they are part of the nation’s culture,” it says.

The Sunday Times investigation involved a meeting with Vicky Seth, “one of Delhi’s most influential bookmakers,” at a bar in Gurgaon. Mr. Seth told the undercover reporters, who were posing as bookmakers, that match-fixing “will always carry on in cricket,” as there’s so much money involved.

The big money is made in the big matches, such as Tests and the Indian Premier League, an annual Twenty20 tournament – the fifth edition starts next month – but betting covers all televised games, including English county cricket, which is a good target as it’s lower profile and therefore monitored less closely, Mr. Seth reportedly claims.

Former India cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar, meanwhile, questioned the basis of the article and Mr. Seth’s comments.

“Shocked at the media space a drunk bookie’s claims without evidence is getting,” he wrote on Twitter.

The New Zealand Cricket Board also rejected the report, in which Mr. Seth says he has arranged fixing with New Zealanders. “We are not interested in unsubstantiated rumour or speculation. The integrity and reputation of the game is paramount and NZC have absolute confidence that our players share these ideals,” David White, the chief executive of the NZC, was quoted as saying by the New Zealand Herald.

But in the same article, New Zealand Cricket Players’ Association boss Heath Mills admitted, “There is no doubt that those who play in the subcontinent will inadvertently come into contact with people of ill repute.”

These “people of ill repute” might include women used as “honeytraps” to lure players, according to the Sunday Times article.

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Mohammad Aamer, left, Salman Butt, right and Mohammad Asif were sent to jail in a match-fixing case in 2010.

“Attractive girls are the ideal choice to cosy up to players and to persuade them to work for bookmakers,” it quotes an unnamed bookmaker as saying.

It added that the International Cricket Council is “aware of the activities of a Bollywood actress, suspected of attempting to subvert players.”

The cricket body has reportedly launched an investigation on the matter. The ICC told India Real Time that it doesn’t comment on the activities of its Anti-Corruption and Security Unit.

In another sign that corruption in cricket is widespread, English county cricketer Mervyn Westfield was last month handed a four-month prison sentence after being found guilty of spot-fixing. Pakistan international Danish Kaneria was named as the alleged link to bookmakers, though he hasn’t been charged.

Mr. Kaneria might not be quite as becoming as a Bollywood actress – whose name hasn’t been disclosed – but if he can be a honeytrap for players, then there’s little doubt she can be too.

The specter of match-fixing in cricket may have a prettier face, but the problem apparently remains as ugly as ever.

About India Real Time

India Real Time offers analysis and insights into the broad range of developments in business, markets, the economy, politics, culture, sports, and entertainment that take place every single day in the world’s largest democracy. Regular posts from Wall Street Journal and Dow Jones Newswires reporters around the country provide a unique take on the main stories in the news, shed light on what else mattered and why, and give global readers a snapshot of what Indians have been talking about all week. You can contact the editors at indiarealtime(at)wsj(dot)com.